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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23260030">BOKUAKA: By the Shores</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Porcupixel/pseuds/Porcupixel'>Porcupixel</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, First Meetings, Fluff, M/M, One Shot, Prompt Fic</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 06:09:21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,431</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23260030</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Porcupixel/pseuds/Porcupixel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Bokuto is a merperson who gets injured and washed up on the shore of a beach unconscious, and is found by Akaashi.<br/>From: https://prompts.neocities.org/?otp2=</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Akaashi Keiji &amp; Bokuto Koutarou, Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>77</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>BOKUAKA: By the Shores</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I should probably warn you...I'm not used to writing fluff, but the prompt I happened upon was so cute, I couldn't not write about it! I still hope you enjoy it though!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Growing up in a seaside kingdom, it was almost fate that Akaashi's favorite sea creatures were the mythical merpeople. The young prince was always fascinated by the human-like beings, and the endless tales and artworks that flooded the libraries and galleries never ceased to entertain him.</p><p>So, one could only imagine the excitement Akaashi felt when he saw a merman lying on the shoreline just outside the palace walls.</p><p>Akaashi ignored the guards and maids that ran after him. When he saw the fish-tailed creature emerge from the water surface, Akaashi had never felt more excited in his entire life.</p><p>The merman was absolutely breathtaking.</p><p>He had a strong, periwinkle tail with delicate white flukes that ran from the lower half sides down to the tip. The only strange thing Akaashi found was the merman's hair, which was dually colored gray with black streaks.</p><p>And, possibly the crimson that had pooled beneath the merman's body, too.</p><p>Akaashi's heart raced, but he tried his best to gently pull the merman's hand away from his side. There was a large, bleeding gash. Suddenly, the merman stirred and his face contorted in pain. Akaashi was alarmed, but luckily the merman didn't wake up.</p><p>The prince rushed to the royal infirmary, grabbed as some healing oil and cloths, and went back to the unconscious merman. He poured some of the oil on a cloth and gently dabbed the wound. The merman jolted upright with a very awkward 'Yowieee!'</p><p>The merman clutched his wounded side then froze. He slowly turned to Akaashi, eyes as wide as tea saucers. The two stared at each other for a moment, and in the next, the merman was backing away from Akaashi.</p><p>"Stop trying to poison me, human," he exclaimed.</p><p>Akaashi was, to put it simply, was baffled. Poison?</p><p>"I wasn't poisoning you. I was treating your wound." Akaashi held up the bottle of oil and the cloth in his hands.</p><p>The merman moved closer. His gold eyes intimidated and mesmerized Akaashi. Those large, owl-like eyes suddenly squinted at the objects in Akaashi's hands, then at Akaashi.</p><p>"Well, you don't look like the type to poison random merpeople."</p><p>Akaashi nodded sheepishly. "Oh...I...Thank you...?"</p><p>Another awkward staring contest started between the two when the merman stood upright and smiled brightly at Akaashi. "My name's Bokuto Koutaro, by the way! The most awesome, most cool merman that has swum in all seven seas and one ocean in the world!"</p><p>Akaashi felt heat creep up on his cheeks. His heart skipped a beat as Bokuto raked his long bangs back, giving the prince a better view of his face. Bokuto was the first live merman he'd ever laid his eyes upon, but Akaashi felt as if he was staring at the most wonderful creature he'd ever seen.</p><p><em> Wait. He  </em> <strong> <em> was  </em> </strong> <em> staring at Bokuto. </em></p><p>Akaashi snapped himself back to reality. Bokuto didn't seem to have noticed.</p><p>"I'm Akaashi Keiji. The...person who found you?" Akaashi decided to leave out the bit where he was a prince who happened to see Bokuto from his bedroom window. He didn't want to intimidate or scare Bokuto away.</p><p>Bokuto flashed another toothy grin and chortled, only to buckle in pain again. Akaashi rushed to aid him, but Bokuto pouted at him.</p><p>"Not that oil again! That stings!"</p><p>"But that wound has to be cleaned or it will get worse."</p><p>"No!"</p><p>"Well, what will you do about it, then?"</p><p>Bokuto quieted down as if thinking deeply about Akaashi's question. Again, his cheeks felt warm. The merman sat there for about two minutes, while Akaashi remained captivated by the sight.</p><p>Finally, Bokuto pointed towards the sea and said, "I'll just wash it with water and it'll be a-okay! Watch!"</p><p>Before Akaashi could warn him, Bokuto went into the water. The saltwater would sting more than the oil Akaashi had. He found it odd that Bokuto, a merman, wouldn't know or at least forget about that. As the prince expected, Bokuto broke out of the surface as fast as he dove in. However, the merman was grinning from ear to ear as he pointed at the wound that had miraculously stopped bleeding.</p><p>"See that, Akaashi? I made the bleeding stop!"</p><p>"But, shouldn't saltwater make it worse?"</p><p>Bokuto laughed heartily, but Akaashi didn't find the act offensive. He even felt the urge to laugh, too. Bokuto's lightheartedness was quite contagious.</p><p>"Saltwater must work differently for humans then! It doesn't hurt us merpeople, and a little sea kelp cleaned the wound, too!"</p><p>Akaashi suddenly felt a bit dejected. So, had he brought these bandages for nothing, then?</p><p>Bokuto perked up when he sensed the change in Akaashi's mood. He went to the prince's side and tried to cheer him up.</p><p>"Um, why did you try to help me? Usually, humans run away when they see us, but you didn't!" Bokuto made little running gestures with his fingers on the palm of his other hand. That helped lift Akaashi's spirit a bit.</p><p>About what Bokuto said, Akaashi didn't really think of that. He heard from many sailors that merpeople were dangerous and scheming. Those stories had slipped from Akaashi's mind once he saw a live merman on this side of the shore. "Well," Akaashi paused. He didn't want to drive Bokuto away with any misconception humans had about merpeople. Not when he wanted to ask Bokuto so many questions.</p><p>"Well?"</p><p>"When I saw you crawl onto the shore, I became curious. I've never seen a merman before. At least, not in the flesh."</p><p>"Oh, oh, I heard humans made funny stories about us! What do we look like in your paintings, Akaashi?"</p><p>
  <em> Certainly not like you. Not in the slightest degree. </em>
</p><p>"After seeing you, I guess no one ever got the stories right."</p><p>Bokuto pouted again, and Akaashi's heart did another flip in his chest. The merman was so childish and bubbly Akaashi was starting to doubt if those sailors actually met the merpeople in their stories, much less saw them. This merman was spontaneous and charismatic, not deadly and murderous. </p><p>The entirety of that morning was spent with Akaashi, upon Bokuto's request, telling the humans' stories of the merpeople. All the while, Bokuto kept brooding about how unfair humans were being to his kind, which Akaashi found cute.</p><p>"We don't drown humans! They were in the water, so we were inviting them to play with us!"</p><p>"Bokuto, you know that we can't breathe underwater like you."</p><p>Suddenly, the merman smirked. A mischievous chuckle resounded between them. It gave Akaashi goosebumps.</p><p>"But, we can help you breathe underwater."</p><p>"So you are-"</p><p>"Magical? Awesome? Hmmm~? We have merpeople magic which I like to call 'mermagic'~"</p><p>Akaashi chuckled. Bokuto was nothing like the vicious creatures in many of the accounts recorded in the library. The prince had his eyes closed so he didn't see Bokuto's face redden like a giant sea lobster's shell. Akaashi's soft laughter was calming, and it filled Bokuto with a weird feeling. He couldn't stop himself from laughing along.</p><p>That morning could never get better, Akaashi thought.</p><p>Suddenly, in the distance, figures emerged from the sea. Akaashi realized that they were other merfolk waving over at Bokuto.</p><p>Both of them didn't realize that the other was feeling as wistful as himself. </p><p>"Those must be your friends, Bokuto."</p><p>"Y-Yeah! They were probably looking for me. I...have to go, Akaashi."</p><p>Bokuto's mood went down drastically, like a sudden mood swing. The prince smiled at the merman.</p><p>"You can always come back."</p><p>Bokuto reverted to his bubbly self at this. His eyes widened with hope as he looked at Akaashi excitedly. Akaashi wanted to see Bokuto again, and he wasn't hiding it.</p><p>"You really mean that, Akaashi? No one's gonna chase me off, right?"</p><p>Akaashi shook his head and Bokuto threw his arms over the human, only to quickly pull himself back. Bokuto salvaged the awkward air with a hearty laugh.</p><p>"I'll be back tomorrow! You'll come, right, Akaashi?"</p><p>"Of course, Bokuto. I'll be waiting for you here."</p><p>Akaashi got on his feet while Bokuto returned to the water. The prince watched the periwinkle tail kick against the deep blue waves with a rosy hope. But, before he could go past the reef, Bokuto rose from the surface and waved back at Akaashi.</p><p>"See you tomorrow morning, Prince Akaashi!"</p><p>Akaashi waved back, but he suddenly realized:</p><p>
  <em> I never told him I was a prince. </em>
</p><p>Akaashi smiled again. As he walked back to the palace, he could smell the sea on his clothes.</p><p>The prince could not wait for tomorrow morning to come.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Like my work and have some ideas or requests? Leave a comment below or dm me in Twitter @Porcupixelolol ! Thank you for reading my fanfic! Porcupixel, out!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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